Improved amalgamatoe



MARINER & KUNE.

Amalgamator.

Ptented 0a. 6, 1868.

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Letters Patent No. 82,730, dated October 6, 1868.

IMPROVED AMALGAMATOR.

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TO ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:

Be it known that we, Gnonen A. MARINEn and JULIAN KUNE, both of the city of Chicago, in the county of Cook, and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Amalgamators, or machines for separating gold, silver, or other precious metals from ores or other material; and we do hereby declare-that the following isa full, clear, and exact description ofthe same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a part of this specification, in which-.-

Figure 1 is a vertical section,

Figure 2a top view of the cylinders, detached from the case, and

.Figure 3 a section of the cylinders at plate 2.

Like letters refer to the same parts in all of the figures.

The nature of our invention consists in forcing the comminuted ores or prepared material containing the precious metals, below a column of mercury or molten lead, by steam-pressure, in'a novel construction.ahd arrangement of the cylinder, and in the several combinations hereinafter set forth and claimed.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use our invention, we will describe its construction and operation. 7 I

A represents an outer casing, which may be made of brick or other mason-work, but we usually ma'ke'it of iron, about in the form shown, and place it upon a furnace or fireplace, H, made'of brick or stone, or of iron, if desired. This furnace is providedwith a suitable fire-box, w, and vent or draught-pipe, I. I

The fire-box will ex tend under the cylinders or amalgamator proper, nearly or quite the entire distance, while the flue passes around them, so as to utilize all of the heat. The case A is provided with an inclined chute, B, which passes around the cylinders, and discharges into the pipe or tube 11, by which it isconveyed 011'. As it passes through the fire, any of the mercury which has passed over or adhered to the ores will be heated and sublimated, and will pass out of the pipe G, and be condensed, and thus saved. I

The pipe 11 is in a water-tank, and as there is water in the pipe, it will vaporize and fill the case, and so. preventcurrents of air from circulating through the upper portion of the case, and also prevent oxidation of the mercury or lead.

The:amalgarnator proper is made of two cylinders. The outer cylinder, a c, is open at the top, and is closed at the bottom by the curved or conical plate or bottom, 6. The centre of this plate is provided with a socket or hearing, for the lower end of the shaft, by which the agitator is operated. We have a twofold object in curving this plate: one is to give an inclined surface for passing. the ores under the interior cylinder, and the other to give it additional strength to resist the steam-pr essure. The interior cylinder,fol, is open at the bottom and closed at the top by the plate F.- It is supported in place by the brackets a and diaphragm e.

The plate F is provided with several pipesior openings. The pipe C is for theintroduction of steam, and g for the introduction of the prepared ores. At the centre, the shaft it passes through it, and at the side of this shaft there is a short shaft, n, attached to it. Both'of these shafts are. provided with cog-wheels; as indicated bythe red lines, fig. 2. To this 'plate, F, there is also attached a revolving band, a", which-is provided on the inside with cogs, and operated by shaft oz. This band is provided with a scraper, a, which passes over the space at the top, and forces the spent ores on to the chute B.

The feed-pipe lg is provided with a centralshaft and screw-carrier, so as to make the action continuous. If it is not desired to make the action continuous, the upper. section, Z, with the shaft and screw-carrier can be taken out, and the pipeg used simply, which, with' steam-pressure,givesthe machine an intermittent action. When used without the scraper, the shaft n-m'ay be omitted, as well as the band a", and thepower required to operate the agitator may beapplied directly to the shaft h.

The shaft it extends down through the amalgamator, and is provided with arms m, t'o stir the oresas they pass down. At its lower end it is provided with the arms E, which extend under the lower end'of the interior cylinder, and are attached to an annular perforated plate, 1'.

The. plate r is of the same width as the space between the two cylinders, and on its face we place bars or rods, 8, which pass upwards nearly to the diaphragm-plate 0. A sufiicient number of these are attached, to produce the necessary agitation of the mercurial or lead bath.

About midway between the upper and lower ends of the cylinders, we insert between them a diaphragmplate, e, which is perforated freely, as shown at fig. 3, with small holes. To the under side of this plate or ring, pendant-bars or rods, 11, are attached, which descend nearly to the plate 7', as shown at fig. 1.

The space between the interior cylinder and the bottom, I), can be regulated by the screws in the brackets 2', and made wider or narrower, as desired, It will be obvious that the form of the case A can be changed to suit localities, or material of which it is constructed.

The capacity of the amalgamator may be varied by changing the size of the cylinders or their length. The usual size is constructed by making the cylinders three feet-long, and the diameters eighteen inches for the interior, and twenty-six inches for the exterior, which will give an annular space between them of four inches. Any convenient power can be used to operate the agitator and other parts of movement, and the necessary steam generated by any of the well-known means.

In operation, the ores or other material containing precious metals, which have been suitably prepared by any of the usual means, and heated when used with lead, are placed in the hopper of pipe lg, and forced into the interior chamber by the screw-carrier. A steam-pressure is applied at pipe' or through it, and as the ores are deposited upon the bath ofmercury or molten lead, such ores and the mercury or lead are forced by the pressure of the steam into the chamber between the cylinders, and a sufficient pressure is maintained to keep the bath in this ehamber.

The ores, as they continue to fall, pass down the incline of the upward-curved bottom, under the interior cylinder, where, being of a less specific gravity than the mercury or lead, they will rise, and, in rising, pass through the bath.

The ores are distributed to a certain extent by passing through the perforations of the annular plate r, and as the bath, in operation, rises above the annular plate e, they are still further distributed by that. A rotary motion is given to shaft It, by which the arms m and E are made to r'evolve through the ores, and the rods 8, through the bath, so that there will be no adhesion of the particles to prevent the successful operation of the machine. Some care will he required in regulating the pressure of the steam, so as not to force the bath too high.

The operation is substantially the same when the feed-pipe is shortened, and the action intermittent, as described.

The scraper a revolves slowly around the cylinder, and scrapes the exhausted ores 05 on to the chute B. When molten lead is used, a sufficient fire to maintain the fluidity of the lead will be kept in the furnace, beneath the cylinders. When mercury alone is used, the steam will furnish all the heat required for the bath.

The same fire used to generate the steam may also be used for heating the bath, so as to make the whole more compact.

The use of steam with lead, will also prevent the oxidation of the lead, and thereby remove one obstacle which has heretofore been found in the use of lead for this purpose, and no explosion will ensue from the use of steam with hot lead.

Havingthus fully described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The cylinder a 0, provided with the conical plate or bottom 6, in combination with the cylinder (if, supported above the bottom, substantially as shown, V v

2. The annular plate or diaphragm e, to regulate the dispersion of the ores, when provided by the rods u, substantially as specified.

3. The perforated ann'ular plate 1', when provided with the rods, substantially as and for the purposes described.

4. The inclined partition or chutc B, constructed and operating in combination with the discharge-spout v, substantially as specified.

5. The tube or pipe 6, when made to pass through the furnace w, in combination with the escape or condensing-pipe Gr, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

,6. The extension feed-pipe lg, whether used with or without a screw-carrier, substantially as specified.

G. A. MARINER. JULIAN KUNE.

Witnesses:

L. L. Born), EpA. Wnsr. 

